Author
Topic: The Best "tear jerker" films (Read 12277 times)

I usually avoid watching these kinds of films and prefer to reach for the comedies when I do DVD night, but there are some soppy movies that just need to be seen. Here are my recommendations for a good cry, which I think is healthy every once in a while. In random order:

And my all time favorite - Hachiko: A Dog's Story (Hollywood remake), 2009 / Hachiko Monogatari (Japanese Original), 1987. I haven't seen the Japanese original, and I'm trying to find a version with English subtitles, but I can't say much about the Hollywood remake which stars Richard Gere without getting choked up. This movie, which is based on a true story, is absolutely devastating. I've always been a dog lover but this movie gave me a new respect for dogs, I had no idea just how deep a dog's love and loyalty for his/her master can be until I saw this film. The last scene where Parker's wife finds an old, dirty and weak Hatchi still waiting for him to return at the station 10 years after his death just kills me. If you haven't seen this movie (either version) yet, please see it, preferably with your family and pets, and make sure you're armed with plenty of tissues. It's one of those films that you'll never forget. Here's a beautiful tribute to this amazing dog with scenes from the Japanese original: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3s11acb7Z8.

Conquer evil men by your gentle kindness, and make zealous men wonder at your goodness. Put the lover of legality to shame by your compassion. With the afflicted be afflicted in mind. Love all men, but keep distant from all men.—St. Isaac of Syria

"La Dolce Vita" by Federico Fellini, "The Ice Storm" by Ang Lee, "The Mirror" by Andrei Tarkovsky, "The Unfinished Piece for a Mechanical Piano" by Nikita Mikhalkov, "Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors" by Serhiy Paradzhanov.

I'm not usually the one to cry, but that scene where the Theotokos runs to Christ as he falls remembering the times of the Christ child when he fell put a tear to my eye in "The Passion of the Christ."

What was the name of that movie (and that famous singer) who had terminal leukemia or something. Something like the last walk in the aisle, or the last something. I forget, and too lazy to look for the name, but there was a scene in that movie when son reunites with father; that made my eyes watery a little bit.

mmmmm....and I watched The Notebook because of its popularity. Didn't make me cry, but rather depressed.

La Vita e Bella...great movie! Didn't make me cry though.

Logged

Vain existence can never exist, for "unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain." (Psalm 127)

If the faith is unchanged and rock solid, then the gates of Hades never prevailed in the end.

The Lion King. I don't know why it still makes me cry since I've seen it eleventy billion times, but it's like a Pavlovian response now.

Also, Shadowlands, the romanticised story of C.S. Lewis's life starring Anthony Hopkins and Debra Winger.

Grave of Fireflies, an anime film about two very small children trying to survive after their parents are killed by the nuclear attacks on Japan during the second World War .

Barefoot Gen, another anime about people trying to survive the nuclear bombs in Hiroshima. This one is actually an animated memoir by the writer/director whose story is told through the main character, Gen. Be forewarned, many of the images and themes are graphic and violent.

I'm going to have to stop there or have a meltdown.

« Last Edit: April 20, 2010, 01:20:00 PM by EofK »

Logged

Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so. -- Douglas Adams

I have cried once during Theodin's speach to his soldiers right before they ride into the battle before the gates of Minas Tirith in The Return or the King. I know... I know... I'm a dork.

« Last Edit: April 20, 2010, 04:12:36 PM by Papist »

Logged

"For, by its immensity, the divine substance surpasses every form that our intellect reaches. Thus we are unable to apprehend it by knowing what it is. Yet we are able to have some knowledge of it by knowing what it is not." - St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa contra gentiles, I, 14.

Band of BrothersSmoke Signals (Although it is often labeled a "comedy" it is NOT a comedy)P.S. I love you (Although admittedly I did watch this movie while pregnant and my husband was deployed, so maybe it wouldn't be a tearjerker now)Les MiserablesCyrano de BergeracUP (the very beginning montage is just gut wrenching)Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (towards the end)Red CliffThe PianistHotel RwandaMen of HonorLawrence of ArabiaTo Kill a MockingbirdThe Grapes of WrathAmistadWalk the LineLeon-The Professional (A very violent movie that is pretty emotionally exhausting. Natalie Portman at her finest in my opinion)

I am sure you are correct. But the movie itself will always be a tearjerker for our family. Much of my husband's family lived the life outlined in that book. So when we watch it there is more of a personal view I guess.

I might be the only man alive who cried when I watched Babette's Feast. A great movie!

Here are a few more that immediately come to mind:

Brian's SongOld YellerThe Great SantiniMalcolm XDances With Wolves

Selam

Logged

"Whether it’s the guillotine, the hangman’s noose, or reciprocal endeavors of militaristic horror, radical evil will never be recompensed with radical punishment. The only answer, the only remedy, and the only truly effective response to radical evil is radical love."+ Gebre Menfes Kidus +http://bookstore.authorhouse.com/Products/SKU-000984270/Rebel-Song.aspx

Some movies are so sad and intense that it becomes impossible to cry--not with that stone sitting in the middle of your chest. For me such movies include Passion of the Christ, The Killing Fields, The Road, and Schindler's List.

Other movies are simply tragic but in a good way. For example, the sacrifice of the self for the greater good (Casablanca and the classic good-versus-evil movies, such as the Lord of the Rings); the sacrifice of the self for one's faith (Quo Vadis); and, any dog-loves-man-and-then-dies movie such as Marley and Me.

Finally, some movies elicit cries because of their extraordinary depiction of nobility, goodness, beauty and the human condition. I was affected by movies as diverse as Lawrence of Arabia, Babette's Spring, Manon of the Spring, As Good As It Gets, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Cinema Paradiso, Ben Hur, Dr. Zhivago, It's A Wonderful Life, Gone with the Wind, Ghandi, Patton, 2001: A Space Odyssey, On the Waterfront, The Godfather 1 and II, Gladiator, Steel Magnolias, Terms of Endearment, many Broadway or Disney musicals, Strictly Ballroom, Amadeus, Kolya, Bridge on River Kwai, and Gold Rush.

Shawshank RedemptionPassion of the ChristGran Turino (can't help this one)Ben-HurBarabbasThe RobeThe Ice StormField of DreamsSchindler's ListThe Two Towers (not the other two; especially for Sam's words at the end that there is still some good in this world and that it is worth fighting for)The Man Without a FaceWe Were SoldiersDances with Wolves

"Positive" stereotypes are still stereotypes, and thus offensive. Many American Indians such as myself found the movie offensive and hilarious. I was trying to make light, not to be offensive to those of you that like the movie.

What was the name of that movie (and that famous singer) who had terminal leukemia or something. Something like the last walk in the aisle, or the last something. I forget, and too lazy to look for the name, but there was a scene in that movie when son reunites with father; that made my eyes watery a little bit.

mmmmm....and I watched The Notebook because of its popularity. Didn't make me cry, but rather depressed.

"Positive" stereotypes are still stereotypes, and thus offensive. Many American Indians such as myself found the movie offensive and hilarious. I was trying to make light, not to be offensive to those of you that like the movie.

I didn't view the movie as an authentic documentary on Native Americans. What moved me was the theme of humanity and friendship that transcends cultural boundaries. I also thought the movie was balanced in that it portrayed good and evil amongst Native Americans and White Americans. Many good themes were well developed, such as honor, good and evil, prejudice, racism, justice, and loyalty. Just watch it as a movie instead of a historical documentary. But of course I can certainly understand if you found it offensive as a Native American.

Selam

Logged

"Whether it’s the guillotine, the hangman’s noose, or reciprocal endeavors of militaristic horror, radical evil will never be recompensed with radical punishment. The only answer, the only remedy, and the only truly effective response to radical evil is radical love."+ Gebre Menfes Kidus +http://bookstore.authorhouse.com/Products/SKU-000984270/Rebel-Song.aspx

Tear jerkers? Generation X Arabs spent their entire childhood imbibing mature (for children at any rate) Japanese anime, either tragic or with strong chords of sadness and pain (we would even add to that mix, replacing the cute kawaii Japanese openings with typical Middle Eastern melancholic melodies). It truly explains why we have come to be such utterly dysfunctional wrecks, being fed stories of orphans and suffering and God knows what also.

Mina, if you're the right age you probably remember somewhere in the deepest, longest-neglected recesses of your memory the musically charged scenes where Peter's blind grandmother and Heidi's grandfather break down in shock once the girl is snatched away to Frankfurt.

We also watched Syrian dramas (NOT in the style of Latin soap operas that your grandmother probably watches) and with music like this, you can get an idea of the tone things could take. In the case of this one, long story short, the fiery spirited protagonist having lost both his legs, at the end and on his wheelchair drops off the cliff.

What was the name of that movie (and that famous singer) who had terminal leukemia or something. Something like the last walk in the aisle, or the last something. I forget, and too lazy to look for the name, but there was a scene in that movie when son reunites with father; that made my eyes watery a little bit.

mmmmm....and I watched The Notebook because of its popularity. Didn't make me cry, but rather depressed.

La Vita e Bella...great movie! Didn't make me cry though.

A Walk to Remember?

YES...that's the name.

I knew it had something to do with walk in it (down the aisle of course).

Logged

Vain existence can never exist, for "unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain." (Psalm 127)

If the faith is unchanged and rock solid, then the gates of Hades never prevailed in the end.

Tear jerkers? Generation X Arabs spent their entire childhood imbibing mature (for children at any rate) Japanese anime, either tragic or with strong chords of sadness and pain (we would even add to that mix, replacing the cute kawaii Japanese openings with typical Middle Eastern melancholic melodies). It truly explains why we have come to be such utterly dysfunctional wrecks, being fed stories of orphans and suffering and God knows what also.

Mina, if you're the right age you probably remember somewhere in the deepest, longest-neglected recesses of your memory the musically charged scenes where Peter's blind grandmother and Heidi's grandfather break down in shock once the girl is snatched away to Frankfurt.

We also watched Syrian dramas (NOT in the style of Latin soap operas that your grandmother probably watches) and with music like this, you can get an idea of the tone things could take. In the case of this one, long story short, the fiery spirited protagonist having lost both his legs, at the end and on his wheelchair drops off the cliff.

There's some sad Egyptian soaps out there, but for me personally not even worth the watch. I think a lot of them are real low-quality acting, even though they're crazy famous in the Arab world.

Wasn't one to watch the Egyptian productions (the one time I did was when there was a twist with the Sa`idi accent in the lead role and a connexion to the Copts in Khaalati Safiy'yah wad-Dayr), but as for the Syrian ones, a general waste of time today. The Syrians seem generally to excel in one thing: the musical openings and intros. The productions I am referring to are ones from decades ago. The likes of Ayman Zaidaan and Rafeeq Sbee`i brought acting calibre that is lacking in the newer crop (though the former is not suited for historical roles: I winced seeing him play Holagu), but the dramas in question are also ones we grew up with as children, and so our perceptions were quite different.

Remains of the Day: This is a great movie, and it always chokes me up at the end. Anthony Hopkins can work it man!

Selam

« Last Edit: April 21, 2010, 02:41:16 AM by Gebre Menfes Kidus »

Logged

"Whether it’s the guillotine, the hangman’s noose, or reciprocal endeavors of militaristic horror, radical evil will never be recompensed with radical punishment. The only answer, the only remedy, and the only truly effective response to radical evil is radical love."+ Gebre Menfes Kidus +http://bookstore.authorhouse.com/Products/SKU-000984270/Rebel-Song.aspx

Grave of the Fireflies (two kids trying to survive in bombed-out Tokyo)The Thin Red Line (US marines on Guadalcanal)The Harp of Burma (Japanese soldiers at the end of the war, trying to find their comrade who's become a monk)Das Boot (The classic submarine movie. Grim stuff)

Logged

Mencius said, “Instruction makes use of many techniques. When I do not deign to instruct someone, that too is a form of instruction.”

Some movies are so sad and intense that it becomes impossible to cry--not with that stone sitting in the middle of your chest. For me such movies include Passion of the Christ, The Killing Fields, The Road, and Schindler's List.

Very possible to not cry (except "The Killing fields" and "The Road" that I haven't seen). "Passion of the Christ," IMHO, is pure Hollywood, and so is "Schindler's List." Beating you on your emotions without any penetration into the essence of what is shown. "Schtellel."

Political commentary removed (since I can't see moving this whole post to Politics) -PtA

Heorhij, you know better than to post politics on the public boards. This warning will therefore last for three weeks. If you think this action wrong, please feel free to appeal it via PM to either Fr. George or Veniamin.

I cried at two points in the movie Gettysburg. When General Pickett told General Lee that he had no division, and when General Lee told his men that the defeat was his fault, and they refused to believe him.

Logged

I would be happy to agree with you, but then both of us would be wrong.

I forgot one, called God on Trial, which made me tear up at the end. It is about a group of Jews at Auschwitz who essentially put God on trial for "breaking the contract" that he had made with the Jewish people.

That certainly explains one of the reasons I tear up when reading or watching the fall of Barad-dûr. The other reason is that this reminds me so vividly of Christ's destruction of Hades on the first Holy Saturday (a connection I think Tolkien fully intended).

I orignally saw that as a child and years later I bought it on VHS...watched it once and then threw it out. I can't watch those types of movies. Another one like Old Yeller is Turner and Hooch, I can't get myself to watch Marley and Me.